International Women’s Day is celebrated around the globe every March 8 since 1913. This particular day is aimed to help nations worldwide eliminate discrimination against women. It also focused on helping women gain full and equal participation in global development.
Alongside, the National Women’s Month Celebration (NWMC) every March is part of the worldwide observance of the International Women’s Day.
The following issuances serve as legal bases for the annual national activity:
- Proclamation No. 224 s. 1988 declaring the first week of March each year as Women’s Week and March 8 as Women’s Rights and International Peace Day
- Proclamation No. 227 s. 1988 providing for the observance of the Month of March as Women’s Role in History Month
- Republic Act (RA) 6949 s. 1990 declaring March 8 of every year as National Women’s Day.
2017-2022 Theme
In 2017, the Philippine Commission on Women Board Members and Inter-Agency Technical Working Group identified the NWMC theme “We Make Change Work for Women”, which shall be used from 2017-2022. It highlights the empowerment of women as active contributors to and claimholders of development. This pursuit of development is also anchored on the commitment of “Malasakit at Pagbabago” or True Compassion and Real Change.
Here are 8 women in the blogging and public relations (PR) industry who rock, side-by-side, and shaped the community of bloggers and PR practitioners. These are their stories of equality, independence, and courage.
Shyla Carmina Reyes, 45
Working in public relations office for 20 years has given Shyla Carmina Reyes the skills to foresee things as they should in her line of work. Dubbed like a doting mother to younger PR practitioners, Shyla is the go-to advisor and confidante of her workmates and close friends in the blogging and PR sphere.
“Women are much stronger and independent. More driven and focus,” said Shyla.
Shyla is the current Corporate Communications Head at M2O Communications with several positions to add to her credentials: Director of Media Relations Team; Lead the APEC Summit PR Team for Foreign Correspondent Media; and Expertise on Business PR, Crisis Management PR, and Tech Lifestyle.
Lariza Garcia, 50
“Equality and independence is a right for everyone but it should not be abused. Using equality and independence as a tool for own personal gain and not thinking its impact to others is a no no. This should be use constructively and for the betterment of not only ourselves but for those people around us and those who will be affected by our decisions when we use equality and independence as a right,” said Lariza Garcia, a mom of five accomplished adults.
Lariza, of Mom’s World of Arts and Happiness, has been blogging since 2011 and she is a proud parent who single-handedly raised her children well throughout the easy and difficult times of her life.
“Everyone needs courage, it’s our armour to face every day’s life up and downs. It’s what we need to able to accomplish dreams and goal in life. Courage can’t be measure by how big your accomplishment is, it’s how you deal with every step that you encounter. These small steps may be a big leap compared to others and it take great courage to overcome that.”
Judy Ann Teo, 35
10 years and 8 months, and still counting. Judy Ann Teo works at Insight 360 Consulting Services and her work experience taught her many things when it comes in handling different people.
“For me equality means having the same rights and opportunities. Allowing everyone to develop their talents/potentials. And treating everyone with fairness. Independence is knowing who you are and what you want to do in life,” Teo shared.
Judy Ann is one of the well-loved PR person from the ranks of traditional media, bloggers, and social media influencers.
She’s also very supportive to her husband, Ryan, who is now making his own name in the world of auto racing.
“Courage for me is willingness to face difficulties in life and able to manage and overcome your fear. You must learn to accept your flaws and weaknesses and eventually it will help you to boost your overall confidence.”
Ria Hazel Lumandog, 34
For Ria Hazel Lumandog, “We are lucky now that women are experiencing equality in terms of education and career. Hopefully this will continue until the next generation so that women will have the confidence to do more and be more than they are worth.”
A decade in blogging, Ria learned the ups and downs and the many faces of society in real life. Through social media, Ria had shared a lot of stories and on her website Sugar Smile that are meaningful and at the same time, entertaining.
Lydia Vivero, 58
“Women, like men, can contribute a lot in the society and for the country. With the right motivation, courage, heart, and fear of God, we can be whoever we want to be as we reach our dreams,” said Lydia Vivero, a fearless and a woman full of motivation who believes that equality plays a major and integral role in building a great society and nation.
“But of course, with all the success that we achieved in life, be it personal or in our career, we should be grateful and be humble, and thankful for all these blessings.”
Tita Lydia, as she is fondly called, works as Media Relations Director at Agents International, Inc. She’s been doing PR for the past 16 years.
Louisa Papa Mercado, 40
“I encourage women to be independent and confident, while accepting their flaws and continuously striving to improve but enjoy the journey of it all. Every step we take to improving ourselves is a humble step for us but an example set for others,” said Louisa Papa Mercado. Louisa is a single parent who made a remarkable and successful journey to fitness, that empowered her personality and boosts the confidence in her which she regularly share on her social media feed.
Louisa blogs at Art of Being a Mom for 6 years sharing her life experiences through her website. She’s a one tough momma who only wished for better future for her kids.
“As a blogger I try and share my own experiences of personal daily struggles as a way of encouraging others to try as well. As a mom, I want to leave my kids with a strong and positive memory of their mom who always did her best for them and herself.”
Aside from blogging, Louisa is also available for celebrity and event hosting gigs.
Cay Valdez, 28
6 years in the industry and currently works at Havas Media Ortega as Account Director, Cay Valdez is one of the nicest PR person that you’ll ever meet. Don’t get intimidated by her pretty face and stunning personality because Cay can be a ‘cowboy’ too around the people she’s comfortable with.
A single mom to a 7 year old cute little boy, Cay is also a survivor of life and a strong independent woman who can accomplish even the most complicated tasks.
“Equality, independence, and courage. These are the catalysts for women to stand upright whenever they’re knocked down, to break barriers of judgement, to uplift each other’s spirits, and to keep shining in spite of scarring agonies,” said Cay.
Karina Ramos, 41
Age is just a number, as the old adage goes. For this mom of two adorable kids and a growing adult, “parenting is a skill that a woman should be proud of at any age,” according to Karina Ramos – blogger, radio anchor, digital sales executive, mother, and housewife.
“Equality gave us the power to be accepted anywhere, especially in employment. Gone are the days when men are looked upon as superiors in the workplace and women are only given simple assignments. I’m proud to share that I once trained as a welder as a prerequisite for a job when I was younger,” said Karina who discovered blogging in 2013. Since then, Karina has become one of the most requested ‘mommy bloggers’ in that niche, representing her blog Digital Filipina.
“I was taught of independence at a very young age. I worked in the Middle East on my own to support my first-born child. It also brought out the courage in me, to do things independently for my kids and my family,” she added.
Aside from blogging, Karina previously worked as Digital Sales Executive at Manila Bulletin. Working for the leading newspaper (digital and print) was a wonderful experience for Karina and it created an opportunity to sharpen her PR and sales advertising skills.
